Brad Hogg suggests India to drop Sanju Samson or Shreyas Iyer to accommodate Rishabh Pant in ODI and T20I side

Rishabh Pant batted beautifully in the last two Tests against Australia and now has made a strong claim to be back playing for India in all the formats. Ahead of the Australian tour, the wicketkeeper-batsman was dropped from the ODI and T20I squad, after a disappointing IPL 2020. However, his knock of 97 in the Sydney Test, followed by the brilliant unbeaten 89 at the Gabba has now made his way a little brighter. 

Pant has also got the backing of the former Australian spinner Brad Hogg, who feels that the Delhi player should be drafted back in the side for limited-overs matches. The two-time World Cup winner has given an opinion that he should be replacing either Sanju Samson or Shreyas Iyer in the ODI squad. 

Hogg, while speaking about Rishabh Pant’s inclusion, praised the young player for the two knocks. He also suggested India should go for someone who can do the job of an all-rounder instead of having Iyer or Samson. The two batters were the preferred option for Virat Kohli’s team to play in the middle order during the limited-overs leg of the Australian tour. 

“I would be putting him there right now because he has got confidence and belief. He has proven himself with two match-winning knocks in this Test series. You can’t get better than that playing for India on Australian soil. I would put him in place of Iyer. Keep your all-round options there for batting and bowling depth. He will be there for either Sanju Samson or Iyer,” Brad Hogg while speaking on his Youtube channel. 

Brad Hogg opines on Rahane replacing Kohli as Test Captain

He also gave an opinion on the recent discussions of Ajinkya Rahane replacing Kohli as the Test captain after the series win. Many experts have called for Rahane to be made the Test captain after his captaincy helped India beat Australia in such difficult circumstances.

“He (Virat Kohli) bats better when he is the captain. I think if you change it, it would destroy the culture of the Indian cricket team. It might affect Kohli’s batting. He wouldn’t want it to happen, but it will happen”, said Hogg.